How to Find the Magic in an Educational App

This originally appeared in Getting Smart, it seemed like a great time to recycle it!

The concept of how to find the magic in an educational app came up recently during our weekly EducationalAppTalk forum. The question arose, “Why should educational apps be field-tested?” Well, we (teacherswithapps) field test apps with kids on a regular basis and have found that most often it is the kids who find the MAGIC. The magic happens when really good content comes together with a fun and totally engaging interface. Neither can stand-alone; adults often miss critical components that children find naturally in the course of their play. Developers can incorporate the best content in the world, it could be aligned to the Common Core State Standards, it could be research-based, and it could be all wrong for the age group it was designed for. Then we have apps claiming to be educational, with all the bells and whistles pulling out all the stops… curriculum never comes up and once again the developer and their app falls short. READ full article HERE.

Jayne Clare is dedicated to being in the forefront of the ever-changing digital landscape. She has been working directly with students and startups and recognizing what works and what doesn’t, along with the why behind both. Jayne co-founded Teachers With Apps in 2011.